1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to lighting fixtures or the like wherein rail elements are carried by the lighting fixture for "rough-in" or mounting of the fixture between ceiling joists or the like or engagement of the fixture with gridwork of a suspended ceiling and particularly to a clip or latching structure mounted to the lighting fixture to engage or latch the rail elements in place once the fixture is positioned properly in an installed configuration.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Lighting fixtures and particularly recessed downlighting fixtures mountable above the ceiling to building structural elements or to a gridwork of a suspended ceiling are often mounted within the ceiling by means of bar hanger assemblies which are carried by the lighting fixture. A description of recessed lighting fixtures in particular and components of such fixtures including bar hanger assemblies can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,690,423, the disclosure of which is incorporated hereinto by reference. While U.S. Pat. No. 5,690,423 provides description of bar hanger assemblies in general and also describes a particular bar hanger assembly useful according to the present invention, a more extensive description of bar hanger assemblies and a particular bar hanger assembly useful according to the invention can be found in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/690,314, filed Jul. 25, 1996, now abandoned, and assigned to the same assignee, the disclosure of this patent application being incorporated hereinto by reference. As is discussed in detail in the aforesaid co-pending United States patent application, bar hanger assemblies are typically formed of two elongated elements slidable relative to each other, the assembly being slidable relative to the lighting fixture itself, to allow extension between lengths slightly greater than any one of the elements and slightly less than the combined length of the two elements, ends of the elements being nailed or otherwise affixed to wooden joists of the ceiling or the like. U.S. Pat. No. 4,723,747 to Karp et al describes an extensible bar hanger assembly intended to support recessed lighting fixtures in a ceiling. The Karp et al bar hanger assemblies include a pair of hanger bars with each of the bars having a longitudinally extending dome providing stiffness to the structure and with each bar having a longitudinally extending slot formed in the top of the dome and which is adapted to receive interlocking ends of the bar hangers. The bar hangers of Karp et al typically require a user-supplied securing nail in order to fasten each end of two bar hanger assemblies to spaced wooden joists between which a recessed lighting fixture is mounted by the Karp et al bar hangers. Druffel et al, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,577,824, describe bar hanger assemblies intended to be mounted to structural members such as beams, joists or the like normally found in buildings and which are intended to mount electrical lighting units in such buildings. Druffel et al provide multi-element bar hangers which slide relative to each other and which include two-prong nailing elements at each end of the bar hanger so described, it still being necessary in the Druffel et al structure to utilize user-supplied fasteners such as nails to complete mounting of a lighting fixture, ceiling fan mount or the like carried by the bar hanger assemblies and attached to a joist or the like. Wolf, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,029,794, describes bar hanger assemblies intended to support lighting fixtures in the ceiling of a building. The elements forming the Wolf bar hanger assembly include dimensioned slots which are intended to mate with protuberances extending from another element of the bar hanger assembly. Other bar hanger assembly structures are shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,313,154 to Capostagno et al; U.S. Pat. No. 4,336,575 to Gilman; U.S. Pat. No. 4,471,416 to Druffel and 4,972,339 to Gabrius to name a few. The bar hanger assemblies of these patents must typically be attached by user-supplied nails or the like to joists between which the bar hanger assemblies mount a recessed lighting fixture or the like. Bar hanger assemblies are also known in the art which include nailing plates disposed at the ends of bar elements and which allow mounting of the bar hanger assemblies and thus lighting fixtures carrying the bar hanger assemblies to joists without the need for user-supplied fasteners. Bar elements of available bar hanger assemblies also include integral T-bar notch/tabs which allow securement of a recessed lighting fixture by means of the bar hanger assembly to a suspended ceiling using a T-bar arrangement without the need for additional clips or wires. Russo et al, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,045,985 provides at the ends of bar elements forming a bar hanger assembly separate structural elements which function to hold the bar elements to a T-bar gridwork. U.S. Pat. No. 4,760,981 to Hodges discloses a tab/notch arrangement which allows mounting to a gridwork of a suspended ceiling.
Certain of the bar hanger assembly structures disclosed in the art and particularly those structures wherein a track element is formed integrally with a pan of the lighting fixture are provided with fastening structure which holds the bar elements in place once the bar hanger assembly is extended to a proper degree to fit the lighting fixture within and mount the lighting fixture to the dimensions of a particular installation situation. These fasteners are typically screw fasteners or the like which are typically tightened down with a tool such as a screwdriver and which can be lost during manipulation of the lighting fixture while said fixture is undergoing the "rough-in" process. Rinderer, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,209,444 describes a support for an electrical box wherein structural elements mounting the electric box and slidable relative to each other are held in place by screws once the structure is positioned for mounting between spaced-apart wall studs or the like. However, the art has not previously provided simple structure carried by the lighting fixture which can be operable without tools and both easily and quickly manipulated to latch the bar hanger assembly to the lighting fixture once the bar elements of the bar hanger assembly have been extended to appropriate positions. The art has further felt a long-standing need for a structure capable of being latchable to a bar hanger assembly at locations of the bar hanger assembly of differing size so that positive engagement can be made with either a track element of the bar hanger assembly or a slide element of the bar hanger assembly, such slide element typically being of a reduced size relative to the track element. The invention provides answers to these long-felt needs in the art by providing a clip pivotally mountable to a lighting fixture adjacent or near to a bar hanger assembly and movable between an unlatched position for allowing relative extension between bar elements of a bar hanger assembly and movement between the bar hanger assembly and the lighting fixture carrying the said assembly and one or more latching positions wherein bar elements and the bar hanger assembly are latched in place relative to the lighting fixture once appropriate extension of the bar elements has been determined for a use situation.